Month: April 2011

Northeast State recognized distinguished students, staff, and faculty members of 2010-2011 at the annual Honors Convocation held last night at the MeadowView Conference Resort and Convention Center in Kingsport.

The college’s Outstanding Student Award of 2010 was presented to Lee Boyd II. A Bristol resident and graduate of Sullivan East High School, Boyd maintains a 4.0 grade point average while enrolled at Northeast State. His accomplishments include being named an All-Tennessee Community College Academic Team Scholar, a member of the College’s Alpha Iota Chi chapter of the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, and Who’s Who Among Students in American Junior Colleges for 2010-2011. He graduates summa cum laude in May with his associate of applied science degree in Speech Communication.

The Honors Convocation recognized dozens of students for their outstanding work at Northeast State.

The Program Area Awards recognized outstanding students in the academic department. Program award winners are:

Northeast State President Dr. Janice Gilliam presented the awards to Northeast State faculty and staff who were nominated by their colleagues for their outstanding service to students and the College.

Associate Professor of Cardiovascular Technology, Connie Marshall, was honored with the Distinguished Faculty Member Award. Marshall also serves as program director of the Cardiovascular Technology Department. Assistant Vice President of Evening and Distance Education, Dr. Chris Lefler, received the Distinguished Administrative/Professional Staff Member Award. Brenda Denton received the Distinguished Support Staff Member Award. Denton retired earlier this year after 31 years of service to the College.

Northeast State also recognized students who will be graduating with honors for their academic excellence. A total of 123 students are graduating cum laude (honors), 67 will graduate magna cum laude (high honors), and 82 students will be summa cum laude (highest honors) graduates.

The College’s spring commencement will be held at 7 p.m. on May 10 at the ETSU – MSHA Memorial Center in Johnson City.

So Dani Trinkle was thrilled about winning the coveted role of the Wicked Witch of the West in the Northeast State Community College Department of Theatre’s upcoming production of The Wizard of Oz.

“This is the role I wanted, and I got it,” says Trinkle, an English major at Northeast State. “It is a challenge to play this role because you have to learn to be evil!”

The Wicked Witch of the West (Dani Trinkle) and her flying monkey friend hatch a plan.

The Wicked Witch of the West (Dani Trinkle) and her flying monkey friend hatch a plan.

Taking on a character made iconic by a book, movie, a musical, and a popular revisionist musical, Trinkle studied the character to understand her role in the story. She says adopting the character means learning all aspects of her character including the walk and voice.

“Every role you make your own,” says Trinkle. “It’s about knowing the character, and as an actor you have to find why she is evil and why she is angry.”

The musical production of Wizard is based on Frank L. Baum’s classic novel first published in 1900. The film version released in 1939 became a staple on network television and cemented the story’s characters and witticisms into popular culture.

The Wicked Witch character received a makeover in 2003 when the popular musical Wicked hit Broadway. Adapted by Stephen Schwartz from Winnie Holzman’s book, Wicked told the story of the witch and her sister’s from a sympathetic point of view.

Wicked or misunderstood, the witch’s character makes her a perfect villain to play opposite Dorothy. Evil also flourishes with an army of flying monkeys at your disposal.

“Really she has no one,” Trinkle says of the Wicked Witch. “I decided that her relationship with her monkeys represents the only friends she has.”

Dorothy (Shelby Cade) faces the wrath of the Wicked one.

Like many of her cast mates Trinkle plays a dual character who resides in Kansas and the Land of Oz. The production opens with her as dog-hating grump Almira Gulch harassing Auntie Em and Uncle Henry and demanding Dorothy give up her dog Toto. Despite the more mundane costuming and countenance of Gulch as compared to her devilish doppelgänger, Trinkle says the character brought up a new set of challenges.

“Honestly, Miss Gulch is harder to play,” she says. “I had to get into character of an older woman and do a lot more thinking about how to portray her than the witch.”

This isn’t Trinkle’s first evil stage character. She played a vampiric vixen in Dracula staged last fall by Northeast State Theatre. She has also performed in The Patchwork Players’ production of Alice in Wonderland at East Tennessee State University as well as Guys and Dolls.

The Wizard of Oz opens the curtain at 7:30 p.m. on April 7-9 and at 2:00 p.m. April 9-10 at the Wellmont Regional Center for the Performing Arts. Tickets can be purchased online now at www.northeaststate.edu.

Grab those ruby slippers and get your tickets now to see The Wizard of Oz on stage in the Wellmont Regional Center for the Performing Arts at Northeast State Community College April 7-10!

Directed by Elizabeth M. Sloan, the musical version of Oz brings Dorothy Gale, the Wicked Witch, Toto, and the Wizard himself to life. Stepping into the iconic role of Dorothy is Shelby Cade, who fully understands how big those ruby slippers are to wear.

The Lion (Charlie Schill), Dorothy (Shelby Cade), Scarecrow (Tyler Alley), and Tin Man (Joshua O'Bryan) make their way to the Emerald City.

“This is a role I wanted to play since I was three years old,” says Cade who graduated from the University of Southern Mississippi last year with a bachelor of Fine Arts in Performance. “It is a little nerve-wracking only because there is so much expectation.”

A seasoned performer, she has played leading roles in The Importance of Being Earnest, Noises Off, Doubt, A Parable, and Crimes of the Heart. Shelby also performed at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. as part of the Irene Ryan Acting Competition.

The story follows much of the movie and Baum’s traditional story about Kansas, the tornado, and Dorothy’s fateful trip over the rainbow where she meets a slew of colorful characters and snags a snazzy pair of ruby slippers. When not fighting off the Wicked Witch of the East (Dani Trinkle), Dorothy befriends the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Lion all of whom join her quest to the Emerald City hoping their own wishes might be granted by the Wizard of Oz (Derek Smithpeters).

Dorothy and the Wizard (Derek Smithpeters) discuss flight routes back to the Midwest.

In addition to Sloan’s direction, Oz includes singing and dancing into the production. Northeast State music instructor Tawana Teague heads up the musical numbers while fellow Humanities faculty member Louise Dickson brings her wealth of dance experience as the play’s choreographer.

Joining Cade to form the yellow-brick-road-traveling quartet are actors Tyler Alley (Hunk and Scarecrow), Charlie Schill (Zeke and the Lion) and Joshua O’Bryan (Hickory and the Tin Man).

Alley is a Theatre major at Northeast State who performed in College’s production of Dracula last fall. Needless to say winning the Scarecrow role marks the highlight of his career thus far.

“When I found out I got the role I thought my heart was going to jump out of my chest,” he says. “I got into character as much as possible because I want this to be my career.”

O’Bryan is also earning a degree in Theatre from Northeast State. His theatrical roles include productions of Chess, Godspell, and TheSound of Music. He drew inspiration from Baum’s book about Hickory’s unrequited love for a woman in Kansas as a metaphor of the Tin Man’s longing for a heart.

“I didn’t care what part I got, I just wanted to work with Elizabeth and to learn,” says O’Bryan, who earned an internship this summer with the illustrious Barter Theater. “Having a deep understanding with both characters in Oz and Kansas makes you work harder as an actor but also expands your abilities so much.”

Schill, a one-time engineering student and now theatre major at East Tennessee State University, has performed in A Midsummer Night’s Dream,Come Rain or Come Shine, and Lysistrata. He tackled the demanding dual roles in Oz while picking up a few singing tips and dancing steps well.

“It has really opened my eyes to think, ‘Yes, I can do this,’” says Schill. “Every actor makes his or her role their own; it is about putting all the components together.”

Dorothy gets an earful from the Wicked Witch (Dani Trinkle).

The Wizard of Oz ranks as one of the largest and most elaborate productions ever staged at Northeast State. Sloan directs both flying monkeys and a crew of Munchkins, many of whom are first-time kid actors making their stage debut. The production’s award-winning technical director, and Northeast State alumnus, Brad McKenzie – and Cade’s fiancée – oversees the production’s visual aesthetic.

“The elements of this production have pushed all of us to bring our collaborative creativity to the table. We have all learned so much,” said Sloan, who took the reins of Northeast State Theatre in 2009.

Actors often note Sloan’s credentials as a performer and teacher as a driving force in attending Northeast State’s theatre program. She performed in more than 30 productions as a member of the Barter Theatre’s Equity Acting Company. She is a current member of the Actor’s Equity Association and East Tennessee Repertory Theatre.

Cast and crew members for Oz number more than 70 people. Perhaps Schill best summed up the merry old Land of Oz experience best when describing the production and how his colleagues felt about theatre.

“It is so wonderful to be able to work with people who put their heart and soul into it,” he says. “If you are not shooting for the stars, what are you doing with your life?”

Northeast State Theatre’s production of The Wizard of Oz runs April 7-9 at 7:30 p.m. and April 9-10 at 2:00 p.m. in the Wellmont Regional Center for the Performing Arts.

Tickets are $10 general admission, $8 for students and seniors, $6 for children under 12. Northeast State students with valid student identification get one free ticket. Tickets can be purchased online now at www.northeaststate.edu. For more information, contact Northeast State Theatre via e-mail at emsloan@NortheastState.edu.